


Someday We'll Live Our Lives Out Loud

by SebastianStan



Category: Captain America (Movies), Captain America - All Media Types, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Harry Potter Setting, Hogwarts, M/M, Magic, Ministry of Magic, More characters to be added later, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pierce is a dick, Sorry guys, Werewolves, also rated for later chapters, semi major character death
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-05-29
Updated: 2015-06-27
Packaged: 2018-04-01 18:52:17
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,965
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4030816
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SebastianStan/pseuds/SebastianStan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Being expected to take over a Ministry position of his adoptive father is hard enough, being sorted into the exact opposite of his 'family's' house is even worse. Not only that, his new schoolmates aren't exactly warming up to him as he had hoped and Bucky isn't sure how he's going to survive 7 years at Hogwarts. </p><p>Meeting a new friend in the middle of the Forbidden Forest was definitely not on his agenda but it will end up being the best thing that's ever happened to him. If only he knew the reason for his new friends secrecy and how he will change his entire life.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> This story is heavily inspired by this amazing fic by FullMoonDreams Once In A Blue Moon seriously you should read it cuz its one of the best fics Ive ever read. 
> 
> That being said, there are some similarities in my fic but the plot will be alittle different. Also I just want to point out that when Steve gets older he's going to be somewhere between pre and post serum, so he's not that tiny but hes not muscular either. Plus he'll still have most of his ailments. And this is a HP au but everything that happened doesnt exist, so no Voldemort, no Harry but all the teachers are there.
> 
> Title taken from Someday by Rob Thomas, if you havent heard this song you should. Its one of my favorite songs ever.  
> Feel free to follow me on Tumblr and ask me anything you want :)

It was a death sentence. 

The full moon had just proven it. A woman cried in the corner as her husband and eldest son glared at each other on opposite sides of the hall.

"You cant take that monster! He must be put down by the ministry." Their father glared down at his older son.

"I wont let you do this to him, he’s your son! How can you say that about him? He is only six, how can look at him and say those things!" Phil protested pulling out his wand; no longer caring about underage magic use. This was about his little brothers life.

"Please, you don’t understand Phillip, its much more merciful this way, he’s been sickly his entire life, I doubt he will survive to adulthood anyway!" The man pulled out his wand and started the motion for his spell but before he could, Phil disarmed him.

"Selling out your own son. You are the monster here not him." Phil rushed past where his father had fallen against the wall and into Steves room as their mother screamed and hurried to her husbands side.

"Steve?" Phil called, stepping into the dark room slowly. It looked as though a tornado had ripped through it. "Where are you? I’m not going to hurt you I promise." 

Phil only sighed as his brother made no sign of his hiding spot, no doubt scared out of his mind after what happened. Listening carefully he heard the telltale huffing of Steves labored breathing coming from the closet. Phil quickly made his way to the bedside tabled which was busted across the room and pocketed all his medication but kept the inhaler handy before he cautiously approached the closet. Big blue eyes looked up at him from blonde hair matted with blood. Phil felt his heart breaking all over again as he steadied the fragile child while giving him a puff from his inhaler, then another until his breathing had calmed. 

“Its alright, Steve. You’re ok. I’m gonna get you out of here, everything will be ok.” Tucking the inhaler into his breast pocket he pulled out a clean set of robes fore Steve quickly redressing him so he would blend better. Shoving a hat over the kids head he wrapped him in a blanket before carrying him out of the room. Wand raised ready for any confrontation.

"If you take him, you can never come back, we will disown both of you. You’ll be on the run for the rest of your life." Their father warned.

Phil gave him one last glance shaking his head. "I will never want to see either of you again anyway." Walking out the door into the brisk night air he knew he only had a few hours before the ministry was hot on their tail. Magical transportation no longer an option he headed for the train station. Steve was going to live or they would both die trying.

It took a train ride and quite a bit of walking before the two brothers ended up at the quiet town near Hogwarts. It was just after sunset and they were walking to a lone house on the farside of town, it certainly had seen better days but it was the best they could do.

"Is that where we’re gonna live?" Steve asked softly.

"Yeah buddy, we will be safe here." Phil knew it was an empty promise. There wasn’t anywhere they could truely be safe, not with the ministry searching for them. It was going to be hard for them now, but Phil was ready to do anything to keep Steve safe.

He was just barely 17 when he took custody of his little brother and ran, he was 17 when he had to become an adult and learn to provide for a newborn werewolf.


	2. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Im a rather slow writer and chapters have to go back and forth between me and my beta so I can guarantee regular updates....but I hope you enjoy the new chapter and I'd like to point out that Tony is meant to be alittle more of a jerk than normal but he gets better later in the story.

   It had taken a few years for things to find their way towards normal. At first, Steve hadn’t even been allowed to go outside. No matter what health justifications Phil made, Steve knew it was because he didn’t want the people in town to recognize him. Though eventually, after Steve wouldn’t stop sneaking out, his brother relented and allowed him to go out as long as he didn’t get too close to the village.

After the first year, most of the village kids wrote him off as just the weirdo Rogers kid and avoided him. Having bad health was the best cover for being a werewolf. No one ever questioned why they never had visitors, why little Steve couldn’t run around with the other kids. Phil was able to buy any potion ingredients he needed and nobody batted an eyelash, assuming they were for healing potions.

That was what Phil most insisted Steve learn, simple healing potions and spells. Phil managed to keep the two of them afloat by picking up odd jobs in the village. Shifts at stores that needed extra coverage, a few different fix it jobs. He was carefully average at everything so as not to attract any attention. After the first two years, he was such a common sight all over the village that people stopped seeing him altogether. Their lives had become almost normal in a way that made Phil apprehensive. He knew it could never last.

Which is why, when he saw Steve wrapped in a blanket lying in the window seat looking more miserable than he usually did when sick, he sighed heavily, knowing exactly what was wrong.

"I’m sorry, Steve." Phil sat next to his brother and ruffled his hair, looking out at the fleet of owls flying over their heads. "But you know why you can’t go right?"

"Yeah, Phil, I know...But that don’t make it fair." Steve said softly, coughing lightly into the blanket.

"I know Steve, but unfortunately life isn’t fair." Phil sighed, shaking his head.

"Someone should make it fair." Steve said firmly.

"Maybe someday, but today I have to go tend the bar. I’ll see you later. Try to stay out of trouble. Okay?" He stood up, ruffling his brother’s hair again and walked out.

“Yeah, yeah.” Steve watched Phil leave before turning back to watch the owls fly off into the distance, no doubt bringing important letters to eager children awaiting their arrival.

* * *

  

    The platform was crowded with families and steam pouring out of the train stationed on the tracks. It was bustling with activity, luggage being shoved into compartments and first years rushing to say goodbye to their parents.

Bucky stood watching all the action while his own luggage was being taken care of by Rumlow. His adoptive father was far too busy to be bothered with seeing him off to Hogwarts for the first time, so he sent his 'assistant' to do it for him. Bucky wasn’t sure exactly what it was that Rumlow did for his 'father', Alexander Pierce, one of the head wizards at the Wizengamot, but he's always been around, ever since he and his sister were adopted.

Rebecca was still too young to attend Hogwarts, and Rumlow was only here to make sure he got on the train in time, so he didn’t let her stay long enough to see him off. Bucky envied the families around him who were hugging and kissing his soon-to-be classmates their goodbyes. Rumlow only nodded to him when he returned and nudged him towards the train. He wasn’t as stern or strict as Pierce, but he wasn't exactly friendly to the children either. Bucky kept his expression neutral as he gave one last look towards Rumlow and boarded the massive train.

This was it, finally he'd get to be on his own and away from the harsh, proper life he'd known for the past 4 years. Although he didn't like leaving Becca by herself with that man, he was excited to see what this new school would have in store for him. Having the freedom to be himself without worrying about image or if he was insulting any pureblood families would be a dream come true. At least for a little while.

Bucky was lucky enough to find an empty compartment and he wasted no time settling into a seat close to the window. But as more and more people started piling onto the train, he started to notice them looking at him oddly. Students were scrambling back and forth in the aisle trying to find space to sit, but those looking into his compartment quickly turned away; no one wanted to sit with him. Bucky frowned, not understanding why everyone kept scowling at him through the glass and finding somewhere else to squeeze in.

The train had already started moving out into the open countryside when someone finally opened the door beside Bucky and huffed. He turned to look at the newcomer who had a mess of dark hair and smudges of something dark and greasy looking all over his face. Growing up within the Pierce household, Bucky learned what pureblood families were like, and this kid’s appearance, paired with what seemed like a Muggle band T-shirt over his school uniform surely would have offended all of them. Bucky continued to watch as he slumped into the seat across from him and dumped a pile of notebooks and papers next to him. When the kid finally looked back at him, Bucky expected at least a hello or something, but instead he got, "Didn't think someone like you woulda got sent to a school like Hogwarts. What, did Old Man Pierce think sending his charity case to school to mingle with the commoners would boost his ratings?"

" _Excuse me?_ Who are you?" Bucky glared. _Who does this kid think he is?_ He may not have liked Pierce either, but to hear some stranger blatantly insult him in front of Bucky put him on edge.

"What, don't you read the papers? Surely you could get a newspaper even before you were adopted by one of the richest wizards in Britain."

"How dare you--"

"Tony Stark. My dad invented the flying car, but of course you knew that.” A hand was thrust in front of his face, but Bucky just stared at him. "Uh, hello? You’re supposed to shake it."

The hand continued to wave in his face but Bucky ignored it. “What’s up with you? Aren’t purebloods supposed to be all proper and stuff? Didn’t your father teach you anything?”

“Well duh, but that’s just for show. Besides,” Bucky huffed, “I don’t like their rules anyway.” Tony finally pulled his hand back and rolled his eyes. Bucky was really starting to get annoyed with this kid.

“No wonder no one wants to sit with you. You’re just like Pierce.”

“I’m _nothing_ like Pierce!” Bucky snapped.

“Yeah ok, when you stop acting like you’re above everyone else you get back to me on that.”

“I don’t need your help.”

“See, that’s what I’m talking about. Don’t you know what people are saying about you? My dad talks about it all the time, you know-“

“Do you ever shut up?”

“Alright, fine, jeez. You know I thought you’d be different than what everyone says, but I guess not.”

After that they remained quiet for the rest of the train ride. Bucky had no idea what to do with someone so rude and obnoxious, he was hoping to make friends at this school but this was not what he was expecting. And what did he mean about what people were saying about him? He hadn’t even made it to school and there were already rumors flying around.

* * *

 

 

   Phil had been picking up a bit more work, trying to put some money into savings just in case they ever had to go on the run again. They were living on borrowed time and he had to be ready if the Ministry ever caught wind of their location. He should have known his busy schedule would backfire on him when he ended up working on the day the train full of students came to Hogwarts.

In order to keep his mind busy, Steve was outside, restless in his effort to do all the assignments that Phil set for him. His most recent one was plant identification, he had been working all summer on a sketchbook with all different plants drawn and labeled with their names and possible uses.

He had grabbed his sketch book in the early morning and told Phil he was going to work. Phil didn’t think anything of it and Steve was able to run off and get lost in the woods. Though, out of guilt, he did actually do some of his work. But when it came to be evening, he snuck past the edge of Hogsmeade to the station to longingly watch the train pull up, imagining that he could just go and join the throng of students and go to school with them.

He spied on various students, trying his best to not be seen. One was highly noticeable. He acted like if he didn’t have everyone’s attention on him at all times he would die. Steve rolled his eyes as he watched the kid pulling some blonde girls hair trying to get her attention.

He hadn’t been around many other kids his own age, but he watched, fascinated, and was able to pick out those who were clearly new to Hogwarts. Given away no doubt not only by their smaller size, but their awed faces and playful immaturity which only 11 year olds possessed. Steve longed to be able to join them, to share the joy with friends in going to a magical school and have the chance to be a normal kid.

He was about to run back home when someone caught his attention, a dark haired boy who looked absolutely out of place. No one was really standing near him at all. Steve wanted nothing more than to go make friends with the boy but he couldn’t risk his brother’s anger. He knew the consequences of being seen. Even if none of the other kids could tell outright his true nature, he’d certainly be caught up with the crowd and then there’d be a lot of explaining to do and Phil would no doubt pack them up and leave right then and there.

But the more Steve watched the other boy, the more he wanted to just go over there and talk to him. It took all he had not to do it when he saw the annoying boy from earlier clearly pointing and laughing at the lonely boy after saying something to his friends. Already he could feel a deep growl rising from his throat. As much as he hated being a werewolf, he hated bullies even more, but his brother had always taught him to never use the wolf against people.

Werewolves weren’t accepted as part of society, they were still seen as animalistic monsters with no regards for human life, but Steve knew that wasn’t true. He didn’t want to become like those he’s always heard about in stories. He wasn’t mean and he certainly didn’t want to kill anyone, but didn’t like when people were just plain rude for no reason. However, being on the run had its drawbacks, and Steve could only clench his hands and lay low in his hiding spot as he watched them climb into the boats and head towards the school. The boy he had been watching was one of the last few to board and Steve knew he was taking a risk but he really wanted to help him feel better. He quickly ripped a piece of paper from his sketchbook, wrote ' _cheer up_ ' on it, and tied it to a rock. He threw it as light as he could so as not to hurt, but enough to get his attention and then quickly made his way back home before he could be seen.

Gryffindor. He was put into _Gryffindor_...Pierce was going to kill him. The past couple years, Pierce had been bragging to him about how great Slytherin was, how his whole family had been in it and that he expected Bucky to follow, even if he wasn't his own blood. He had been psyching himself up to be in the house of snakes and instead he got sorted into bloody _Gryffindor_.

It seemed as if his new housemates were just as shocked and displeased as he was. To make matters worse, that Stark kid was in Gryffindor too, not to mention the bruise he had gotten from being hit by a _rock_. He was already a target for bullying (for no reason, might he add; he hadn’t even done anything yet!) and now Stark and his group of friends were teasing him, saying ‘ _even the forest doesn’t like him_ ’. So much for _cheering up_ like the stupid note attached to the rock said. Bucky wasn’t sure if that was someone genuinely trying to cheer him up or if it was just someone else trying to pull a prank on him.

Already his freedom at Hogwarts was starting to seem more like a nightmare. All throughout the ceremonial dinner, Bucky could hear Stark loudly proclaim his dislike of having to share dorm space with the _orphan reject_. As if he had a choice being adopted by a dirt bag like Pierce. These people didn't even know him! His only saving grace was a quiet girl sitting a few seats away from Stark telling him to ‘Shut up, stop being so rude.’ That made him smile just a little behind his biscuit.

By nightfall Bucky wanted to go back home, even if it meant being around Pierce again. At least he could hang out with his sister. The students were given the weekend to get settled in and ready for the starting semester, but that held no comfort for Bucky. Just while trying to figure out how to navigate this school, he'd already noticed the other kids talking about him and not in a good way. They avoided him and a select few even called him some names he'd rather not repeat.

Sunday evening he tried sitting out in the courtyard but of course, Stark and a sandy haired boy managed to find him there.

“Hey Clint, wha’d’ya say we get some practice in before classes tomorrow? I’ve got a few hexes I’m dying to try out.”

“Just leave me alone, Stark.” Bucky groaned.

“Why? You got somethin’ to say, Pierce?”

“My name’s not Pierce!” He snapped. No way was he going to go by that name anytime soon.

“That’s not what the papers say,” Clint said with a hint of amusement.

“I don’t care what the papers say. Don’t call me that.”

“Oh yeah? What are ya gonna do about it if we don’t?”

He should ignore them; he knew he should, but Bucky’d just about had enough of Stark, and now he had this other kid to worry about. He made to catch them off guard by quickly grabbing his wand, but Stark seemed to have been anticipating that move and shouted out ‘ _Expelliarmus_ ’ to disarm him.

“My dad taught me that,” Stark boasted as he advanced on Bucky. “What’s Pierce taught you? Or is he too busy writing stupid laws to actually spend any time with you.”

 _Where are all the freakin’ teachers?_ Bucky thought as he backed up against a pillar. Distantly he heard Clint laughing but he was completely focused on Stark as he continued to walk closer. He wished he knew how to handle these situations, but his whole life had been spent at the orphanage or living with Pierce. He’d never had to deal with issues like bullies targeting him before. He hated that at this particular moment, when he should have been telling Stark off, he just managed to freeze.

Stark laughed again and before he knew it Bucky was being pushed to the ground, his hands scraping painfully against the stone.

“C’mon, Clint, let’s get out of here.”

Bucky picked himself up, listening to their laughing and joking fade as they leave. He hissed quietly when he tried to wipe the dirt off his hands, finding a bit of blood welling up from the scrapes.

He knew he should probably go to the hospital wing, or at least go wash his hands, but the thought of going back inside and having Stark tease him in front of everyone again had him gathering his stuff up and irritably heading down a path to the Forbidden Forest.

There had been a big speech at dinner about how the Forest was dangerous and off limits but Bucky was too angry to care. He hadn’t even been here one full day and already he hated it. He hated not having any friends, he hated being put in Gryffindor, and he hated having to share a dorm with _Stark._ Of all the unlucky things that could happen to him, why did he have to share living space with a bully?

The sun was close to setting but Bucky had enough light to see where he was going but still stick to the shadows to avoid being seen leaving school grounds. 

* * *

 

 

    Steve only felt a little bad about disobeying his brother after going up to the train station. He knew there were risks; there are always risks whenever he goes out around the public, but he’s small and knows how to use that to his advantage.

"I'm home!" He hears Phil call out and Steve quickly scrambled to the grab the books off the coffee table to make it look like he had been studying the pages he was supposed to have been doing all day.

"Hi! How was work?" Steve smiled at him, trying his best to look as innocent as possible.

"Not very interesting, mostly stocking because now that school’s in session, the teachers will be coming into town more and the students on weekends." Phil said as he got himself some water.

Steve deflated a little, “Does that mean I can’t go out anymore?”

Phil looked at him sadly, knowing how much he hated being cooped up in the house.

“Not necessarily. You’ll be fine this first week but then I want you to stay close to the house. I can’t be around all the time to keep an eye on you. I’ve got extra shifts to pick up, but I trust you to stay away from the school and from the students.”

“Okay, Phil.”

"Good. Now then, did you do your work?"

"Yeah."

"Clean your room?"

"Yep."

"Get those plants I asked for?"

"Uh-huh."

"Did you see the train come in?”

"Yeah."

"Steve!" Phil frowned and Steve quickly tried to backtrack.

"It was an accident! I didn’t mean to wander that close!" Steve tried to explain, closing his book.

"Steve, you know why you have to hide! Please don’t make me have to send you to the centaurs while I’m away." Steve winced, knowing his brother was getting desperate if he was threatening to send him to the centaurs. They were on friendly terms and they knew of his condition, but Phil didn’t want to burden them with the possibility of being caught harboring a werewolf.

"I know, I’m sorry…It’s just…they’re so lucky…." He sighed frustratingly, curling up in the corner of the couch and hugging his knees to his chest.

"I’m sorry Steve, but we just can’t risk it. One wrong person sees you and it’s all over."

"God, I know! It’s all I’ve ever known, Phil!" Steve glared at his brother’s calm, unchanging expression.

Phil sighed and moved to sit on the arm of the couch next to Steve. “I know you hate it, and I’m sorry things have to be this way, but you have to know I did what I had to do to keep you safe.”

“I know…” Steve mumbled.

“Look, I won’t take back what I said. You can still go out when I’m not here but please, try and stay away from the students.”

“I’ll try, Phil, M’sorry.”

"Thank you. Now go get cleaned up; I’ll have dinner ready soon." Phil smiled.

The rest of the night passed easily and Steve woke the next morning to an empty house. A list of chores and assignments waited for him as well as a reminder to stay away from the edge of the forest. Steve hurried through the cleaning, raced outside into the fresh air, and took to the forest with the ease of someone who knew exactly where he was going.

Despite his brother’s warnings and his own promise, he did eventually find himself near the edge of the forest, not too close to the school, at least, but enough that if he climbed a tree he could see the castle clearly. Which, of course, is what he did. He settled himself up high on a branch with his sketchbook and began to draw the walls and slopes of Hogwarts.

* * *

 

 

    Bucky stumbled his way through the trees, not used to the uneven ground, and luckily found a small stream rather quickly. His hands burned from the scrapes and he couldn't wait to wash off the grit and blood. He knelt down to put his hands through the running stream when he heard the snap of a twig behind him. He quickly stood back up and turned towards the noise but he saw nothing amongst the trunks of trees.

Still angry from their last encounter and thinking it was Stark coming back for more, he called out, "W-who’s there? If that’s you Stark, I’m not in the mood. I've still got my wand, a-and I’m not afraid to use it this time!"

He heard another snap of a twig and then a rather loud bang and suddenly there was a small boy tumbling out of a tree just in front of him. "S....sorry! I’m sorry, don’t curse me! I didn’t mean to spy on you I swear!" The boy sputtered as he picked himself up off the forest floor, tree needles sticking to his blond hair.

Bucky stared wide-eyed, obviously not expecting this random kid to fall out of a tree. What was he doing, just sitting up in a tree in the Forbidden Forest? He looked to be around his age, maybe even younger given his small stature, and Bucky wondered what he was doing out here clearly by himself.

"Oh... uh it's alright. I'm not gonna hex you, I thought you were someone else...What were you doing up there in a tree?"

“I-I was just drawing. There’s a really great view of the castle and I wanted to draw it.” The boy brushed himself off, straightening out his rather plain looking robes. They clearly weren’t Hogwarts robes, but Bucky still wondered if he went to the school.

“Do you, uh, go to Hogwarts? I haven’t seen you around.”

"No, I don’t." The boy looked…nervous? He kept looking around like he was expecting something to jump out at him. "You know you’re not supposed to be here. It’s forbidden to leave the grounds."

Bucky cocked his head, _How did he know it was forbidden to leave the school grounds if he didn’t go?_

"Yeah, I know, that’s why I snuck out.” Bucky crouched back down, intent on washing his hands in the stream; the cuts still stung. “So you were in a tree drawing Hogwarts but you don’t go there. Do you live around here then?"

"Yeah, sort of." Bucky watched the other boy as he gathered up his belongings scattered when he had fallen. "Shouldn’t you be getting to the matron to clean those cuts?"

Bucky looked down at his hands and then back at the boy, "Probably but I'm trying to avoid going back, at least for a little bit." He turned back to put his hands under the water sighing in relief when the slight sting in his palms went away with the dirt and blood.

“Why? Did something happen?”

“Just…some bully whose decided I’m fun to pick on. It doesn’t help that I have to share a room with him too.”

The boy gave him a hard look but he seemed more irritated at hearing about the bully than Bucky himself. Carefully, he set his stuff down and moved closer to where he was at the edge of the stream.

"That looks like it hurts. I could get the stuff for a healing potion if you want."

"You know how to do that?" Bucky asked incredulously. He had to admit he was a little surprised. This kid said he didn't go to Hogwarts, but he knew things like the school rules and how to make healing potions. Something wasn't right, but the kid seemed friendly enough, and Bucky didn't want to ruin his only potential friendship.

"Yeah, my brother made me learn, ‘cause I get sick a lot and hurt myself real easy." He went to grab his sketchbook and flipped through it, landing on a page full of detailed sketches of plants. “Most of it should be right around here. I only need these three.” He said, pointing to some plants on the page.

Bucky stood up and wiped his hands off on his robe, getting a better look at the plants they were looking for. "Whoa, you drew those?"

"Yeah," The boy paused while examining a plant and plucking a leaf. "Makin’ my own textbook was the only way I’d study."

"So...if you aren't going to Hogwarts, how do you know all this stuff? Is your brother a teacher or something?"

"No, but he went there a few years ago." They walked a bit up the stream to find the last ingredient. "Do you have any siblings?" The boy asked.

"Just a little sister. Her name’s Rebecca, but I usually just call her Becca.” Bucky steadies himself after almost tripping on a large root. “This is the first time I've been away from her for so long..."

He was still unhappy leaving her alone like this with Pierce and Rumlow but he tried not to think too much about it. “It must be hard to be away from her, I’ve never really been that far away from Phil for very long before. At least you can see her on holidays though! And there’s always owls." Once they had all the ingredients, the boy stopped by a large rock to grind them into a paste.

Bucky scowled at the ground, "Yeah, if only I had an owl...my uh, guardian, wouldn't let me borrow his ‘cause he needs it for work. All I got is a dumb cat."

"Cats are nice though. And you can use a school owl. They have them you know, anyone can use them." He smiled at Bucky.

"I might look into it." While the other boy worked, Bucky continued to look at the pictures in the sketchbook. It was then that he noticed the handwriting carefully labeling each plant. "Hey! Were you the one who threw that rock at me? That hurt, you know!"

The boy looked up. "Oh, I’m sorry! I, uh, didn’t mean to hurt you! I just...I saw you at the station and you looked kinda lonely.”

"Yeah well…none of the other kids seem to like me, but thanks, I guess." The blond looked back down and Bucky could see his cheeks slightly tinged with pink. "Here, this should help with your cuts."

Bucky held his hands out and the boy carefully rubbed the now liquid paste onto the scrapes. "So, I know you said you didn't go to Hogwarts, but you've got to be around my age at least, right? And you live so close, how come you don't just go?"

"It’s...complicated?" Again Bucky cocked his head in confusion. He could tell there were things he wasn’t being told, but they did only just meet and he didn’t want to pry and scare him off. When the boy was done, he looked down at his hands to see the potion soaking into his skin and the cuts healing up fast. Then Bucky noticed how dark it had gotten while they had been together.

"Maybe you could tell me about it another time? It's getting dark...I should probably head back to the castle before I do get caught."

"Yeah, probably. I could walk you back?" The boy offered shyly, not meeting Bucky’s eyes and wiping his hands off on his trousers and stood up. Bucky looked around at the trees surrounding them and blushed, realizing he had no idea where they were.

"Uh, yeah, that'd be great...I’m still trying to figure out my way around this place."

"Follow me. Gettin lost ‘round here is really scary. Could be all kinds of monsters in here." The blond started heading back down the stream, following a path only he seemed to know.

"Monsters?” Bucky asked as he followed the other boy, looking around as if the mere mention of them would cause something to jump out from the shadows. “Like what kind?".

"Oh all kinds, probably! Giant beasts ready to kill you as soon as they look at you! What are you afraid of most? It’s probably here." The boy teased.

"Ha! I'm not afraid of anything. Maybe my stepdad, but nothing your forest has got here. Besides, what kind of school would let kids go missing in a forest? Dumbledore wouldn’t let that happen."

"Well, there are worse things than being accidentally killed." The boy shrugged and Bucky looked at him with an odd expression. _Worse things than being killed?_ _Like what?_ He wanted to ask, but all too soon they had made it back to the edge of the forest, the path that would lead him back up to the school right in front of him. He looked back to see the other boy hanging close by the trees, sticking to one like he didn’t want to venture any farther.

"I guess...Uh, thanks for walking me back. I think I would have probably gotten even more lost without your help."

"No problem." The boy smiled and turned to go back into the forest when Bucky realized something and called back out for him.

"Hey! I never got your name! I’m James, but I like being called Bucky."

“Bucky?”

“It’s a nickname from my sister.”

“Oh, well, I’m…Steve, but please don’t tell anyone.”

Before Bucky could ask him why, the boy- Steve ran back into the forest and quickly out of sight.

"...Bye, Steve." Bucky said, trailing off as Steve disappeared. What was that about? He was strange, but he was nice and Bucky wanted to know more about him. He shrugged off the odd departure and carefully headed back up the steps to the school, hoping he could make it back to his bed without being spotted or bothered by Stark.

Thankfully, when he got back to his dorm, Stark and his other roommate (none other than Clint, how lucky could he get…) were fast asleep in their own beds. For all the swagger he held in front of his friends, Stark was rather an unattractive sleeper, lying on his belly and drooling over his pillow, his limbs all over the place. Bucky snickered quietly, wishing he had a camera, before heading to his own space to get ready for bed.

As he crawled under the blankets, his eyes caught sight of the only empty bed in their room. He wasn’t sure why there wasn’t a fourth student assigned to their dorm but he didn’t really care. Only for a brief moment before he closed his eyes did he wish a small blond boy was occupying the bed. Maybe then he wouldn’t feel so alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you think :)


End file.
